Monday, October 14, 2019


Because you never know who might become an enemy? (Or when you might need to leave evidence of some crime on someone’s phone.)
Chinese communist party’s app is reportedly spying on its 100M users
A report from the German cybersecurity firm Cure53 suggests the Chinese communist party’s app, Study the Great Nation, has ‘superuser’ access to over 100 million Android devices. It notes the app has a backdoor through which the government can access messages, photos, contacts, and internet browsing history of these handsets.




Curious. Who will become “choosers of the slain?”
New San Francisco Office Could Curb 'Reckless' Rollouts of Emerging Tech
San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Norman Yee unveiled this week a proposal to create an Office of Emerging Technology to help the city get ahead of the next wave of new devices and services taking off in the high-tech sphere.
The office would be one of the first of its kind in the country, said Yee, and it would help startups navigate city bureaucracy to obtain permits to operate on the city's streets, sidewalks and other infrastructure.
But the office will do more than just help eager tech firms obtain approvals and permits. It will also have the power to weigh the potential impact of a proposed technology on city infrastructure and public safety — as well as privacy and security — before giving a green light to a pilot project or product launch.
Last April, San Francisco officials were forced to play regulatory catch-up and send cease-and-desist letters to startups Lime, Bird and Spin after the companies suddenly flooded the streets with thousands of electric scooters, blocking sidewalks and sparking angry complaints from residents. Yee thinks the new office could curb future bumpy rollouts and anti-tech backlashes.




Now that we had a moment to think...”
New Draft ePrivacy Regulation Released
The Council of EU Member States – one of the two main EU lawmaking bodies – recently released a new draft version of the ePrivacy Regulation (“EPR”). Negotiations on the regulation have been deadlocked for a while, but seem to be gathering new momentum under the Finnish Presidency. Below we highlight some selected topics that may be of interest to readers.




Getting serious now that the threat seems to be getting closer?
The Netherlands Releases a Tour de Force on International Law in Cyberspace: Analysis
In a July 2019 letter to parliament, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs set out the Government’s views on “the application in cyberspace of relevant elements of existing international law.” That letter has now been made public. It is an extremely granular statement, not only in terms of scope, but also with respect to the legal basis for the positions taken. As such, it is a major contribution to the growing body of opinio juris on the subject that includes the recently released French Ministry of Armies’ International Law Applicable to Operations in Cyberspace, (see here, here, and here ), the Estonian President’s speech this year, the UK Attorney General’s Chatham House speech last year, and Australia’s current International Cyber Engagement Strategy (annex on international law ).
International cyber law is a subject close to home for the Netherlands, which in April 2018 was the site of a Russian military intelligence (GRU) cyber operation targeting the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. The country clearly understands that clarity in international law can serve deterrent purposes, lessen the likelihood of unintended escalation in cyberspace, and enable certain robust responses to hostile cyber operations (see here and here ). Accordingly, the country is very active in the ongoing work in the UN of the Group of Governmental Experts on Advancing Responsible State Behaviour in Cyberspace (GGE) and in the UN Open Ended Working Group (OEWG). The Netherlands has also taken the lead in other norms-strengthening activities, including the Global Commission on the Stability of Cyberspace, the EU Cyber Diplomacy Toolbox, and the Hague Process, by which that country engages in international law capacity-building around the world.



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